H&M No. 1 Buyer of Organic Cotton Worldwide in 2010

H&M was the No. 1 global purchaser of organic cotton in 2010, according to the Textile Exchange’s annual market report on Tuesday. The Swedish apparel label, which hovered at fourth and fifth places in 2008 and 2009 respectively, outstripped retail heavies such as C&A, Nike, and Walmart to rank first among the top 10 organic-cotton-using brands and stores worldwide. Adidas, which managed a middling 11th place in 2009, climbed to the fifth spot, and Zara, which didn’t make the cut the previous year, now perches comfortably at No. 4. The new ranking includes a couple of first-timers: Disney and Germany’s Otto Group. Williams-Sonoma, Coop Switzerland, and Levi Strauss, which ranked fourth, seventh, and ninth in 2009, fell off the chart altogether.

MORAL FIBER

With several brands and retailers more than doubling their usage of organic cotton and others maintaining status quo, the Textile Exchange projects a global organic-cotton market worth $6.2 million in 2011 and $7.4 billion in 2012. Shakeup in rankings, notwithstanding, 2010 also marked the first time the Textile Exchange requested data regarding the use of recycled and cellulosic fibers, the results of which will feature in next year’s report. Fun fact? Recycled polyester and Tencel, in particular, led in terms of quantity.